


Re-hash

by Tungsten



Series: All For the Sake of Music--Tungsten's Gorillaz Universe [3]
Category: Gorillaz
Genre: 2nu, F/M, I haven't written most of the story yet I honestly don't know what it's gonna include, Some Fluff, some violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-02
Updated: 2017-04-25
Packaged: 2018-09-21 14:37:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9553055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tungsten/pseuds/Tungsten
Summary: Read my other Gorillaz/2nu fic first!  It's called Maybe in Time and it takes place before this!After 2D and Noodle decide to run away together, they find out it's not all it's chalked up to be.  This is the story of what follows.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys, I'm back. I don't know whether it's gonna be long or good, but I do know Gorillaz is gonna be back together by the end. Stay tuned!  
> (Also, if you read between when this was first posted on Feb 2 and now, Feb 3 at 4:21 PM EST, there were a lot of typos and a bit of bad writing. It's been fixed, mostly!)

**2010, immediately after the events of Maybe in Time.**

Noodle was wrong about something.

And 2D was right.

How embarrassing.

It was only a matter of getting the radio to work onboard the Stylo submarine, but it was significant nonetheless.  Noodle didn’t think she’d been wrong about something so technical since… ever.  Then again, 2D had simply had more time to get to know the machine than she did.  Perhaps it was Murdoc who had taught him how to cause a short circuit in just the right place to activate the device.  Or maybe he figured it out himself.  She just didn't know.

But now they had a bit of music to accompany them on their nearly complete journey to the nearest land of New Zealand.  They were almost out of food and fuel, and getting tired of the cramped little compartment that had been their home for far too long.  But they never seemed to get tired of each other.  They were a new couple, after all.

Noodle’s plan was one she had half-formulated back when she was a teenager: Pick some place with 2D and live there, at least for a few years.  She didn't think a day would come when she would actually act on it.  And now it had.

“Hey Noodle?” 2D had said at one point, as the sun set above the surface of the water.

“Yes?”

“Mind if I change the station?”

“Of course not.”

The dial was a bit finicky, but he managed to get it to work.  He scrolled through the frequencies until he found a station he liked, leaving it for an hour or two before finding another.  He went through two or three cycles of this before something caught his ear.  A familiar voice.

“Noodle!  Noodle come listen to this!”

She took a place in front of the radio, crouching next to 2D.

_...without them.  But that’s okay!  Because I’ve got the next best thing coming up, and it’s by… ugh, Blur, how’d that get in the list?  Anyway, you’re listening to me, Murdoc Niccals, broadcasting to you from HAWAII, YEAH!  ...what was I talking about?  Oh, Blur, right… well here’s the music.  Song 2, I think it’s called._

Then Murdoc’s voice was replaced by another, also oddly familiar.  The lead singer of Blur sounded a lot like 2D.  Regardless, the occupants of the sub shared a glance.  “When did Murdoc get another radio show?” said 2D.

“2D!  We know he’s in Hawaii now!”

“I thought Hawaii didn't exist.”

“Toochi, you've been there.”

“I have?”

Noodle giggled a little before giving him a peck on the cheek.  “Yes, you have.”

“Is that the place where all the people eat sushi a lot?”

“No, that's Japan.”

“Is it the place where they had all those Godzilla-”

“No, again, you're thinking of Japan.”

“Too bad.  I think Murdoc would like it there.  Or I like it there at least.  I dunno if he would.”

“You liked it in Japan?”

“Yeah, nice place.  Kind of weird though.  But I liked it.”

“You're not just saying that to make me happy, right?”

“Course not!  Well, I might just like it cause you're from there, but I genuinely do!”

“...enough that you might want to live there?”

“Sure!  Of course I'd have to learn Japanese first.  But you can teach me, right?”

She smiled.  “I can _try_ …”

“...so we’re moving to Japan?”

“I guess so.”

“We’re not going after Murdoc or anything?”

Noodle sighed, returning to the cockpit of the submarine.  “No, Toochi.  That’s behind us now.  Gorillaz… is behind us.”

“...that’s kind of weird.”

“I know it is.  But you said you wanted to do this right?  You said you wanted to… to run away with me?”

“Yeah, I did, and I still do, just… I didn’t really think about it before.  It’s kinda weird.  Russ and Muds have been my family, really, since I was, what, 20 or something?  It’s just… if we’re never gonna see them again…”

“I never said we’d never see them again.  I’m sure we will, whether we want to or not.  And remember, I joined when I was 10, so I think I have you beat.  But… if you’re having doubts, then I don’t wanna make you do this.  So, Stu… are you in, or are you out?”

“I’m in,” he said, without a moment’s hesitation.  “Let’s… let’s start a new life.”  He gave her a kind, soft smile, the kind only he could seem to pull off.  Maybe it was the missing teeth.  Maybe it was the endless eyes.  Or maybe it was just because he was 2D.

\--

They spend quite a while more on the submarine, passing the time however they could.  The radio was nice; Murdoc’s voice was oddly comforting given how horrible the man was in reality.  They had no other electronic gadgets with them, aside from a small television that couldn’t pick anything up.  Having been onboard for so long, they were tired of it all.  They were tired of the microwaved food, the saltwater getting everywhere, the cramped space, and they were nearly tired even of the sunset.

They had drifted into land in their sleep.  Noodle was the first to rise, waking 2D as soon as she realized that, for the first time in far too long, the sub was not rocking and drifting with the movements of the sea.  They had washed up on a beach somewhere in New Zealand.  Rather, as luck would have it, a beach resort.  It was too early for beachgoers to be out and about, so the two were able to escape the submarine and push it out to sea before anyone saw.  They then strode, holding hands, up to the offices of the resort, hoping they’d have some sort of assistance from the staff.  The office was closed, as it was five in the morning, and the sun hadn’t even yet shown itself, so they decided to wait.  This was an opportunity to take showers, eat good food, live a moment in luxury before they began whatever would come next for them, and they were not about to pass that up.  They were a bit dirty.  Their clothes had been worn for several days straight without having taken them off once.  Noodle, with her fading scars, and 2D, with his eyes and generally disfigured form, would be something of a threatening sight to anyone who didn’t know them.  Luckily, the first person to stumble across them was a fan of Gorillaz and recognized them at once.  It was a little odd for the man, a young clerk who was asked to open up that day, to have to wake two of his favorite musicians who had appeared to have fallen asleep in each other's arms at the office door, but the excitement of meeting them was immense.

The clerk assured that 2D and Noodle were treated like royalty at the resort.  They were given a massive room with two beds (one of which went unused), and unlimited access to all the resort had to offer, free of charge.  Lucky the manager was just as big a fan.  But the biggest favor of all was that of anonymity- the resort agreed not to announce to anyone, not news, not their patrons, that two members of Gorillaz were staying there.

For seven days, they lived like a king and queen.  They revelled in the newness of their relationship, finally allowing themselves to act upon their mad love for each other.  Though neither would ever admit it, they acted like tourists.  They went swimming, ate funny foods, bought region-specific memorabilia and went sightseeing once or twice.  But they’d end each day in a familiar fashion: they’d sit in their room, watching a movie, Noodle in 2D’s arms, resting against him in the same way she did when she was a child.

Eventually the time came to leave.  They took a cheap flight to Tokyo and rented a cheap apartment in the city, first walking into it hand in hand.  It was a little cramped and a little dark, but they’d manage.  Noodle tied her hair back in a ponytail and 2D cut his short, hoping not to be recognized by anyone.

For a while, all was well.  They had plenty of money from their past albums, and used it to fill their new home with only the essentials: a big TV, a few game consoles, several guitars, some new, some old (like Noodle’s original Gibson and her favorite acoustic), keyboards, synthesizers… nearly an entire music studio.  Writing songs together accidentally became one of their favorite pastimes.

Living in Japan again was odd for Noodle.  Very familiar, yet… something was off.  It didn’t feel quite like _home_ the way she remembered it.  The way she’d expected it.  Even with 2D living with her.  It didn’t help that she’d sometimes accidentally revert to speaking Japanese to 2D or to speaking English in public- which led to confusion for everybody.  She did try to teach the language to 2D, but he hardly picked anything up but “gozaimasu”.  He started using it for everything.  Noodle didn’t have the heart to tell him that even in the best of situations, he was making no sense whatsoever.

They eventually would run out of money, so they did decide to find work.  2D got a part time job working weekends at a local music shop, similar to the one he had before even joining Gorillaz.  If anything, it was a promotion, as now he gave occasional keyboarding lessons, proving surprisingly effective despite the language barrier.  Noodle went into teaching as well, but instead of being paid at a shop, she was hired to teach music theory at a collegiate level; often her students were older than she was.  So just a little better.  Naturally, she was the breadwinner, working most weekdays, sometimes into the night.  The days they both consistently had off were Wednesdays and every other Sunday, and they'd spend the entire day basking in the glow of their relationship.

They randomly chose whether to stay in or go out on these free days.  Going out was something of an adventure every time.  Japan had no shortage of items and events that 2D found excessively weird, though entertaining.  Even at the greatest extremes, Noodle was unfazed.  She grew up here, partially.  She had seen it all before.  But she never had anyone to share it with until now.  It made her happy.

Staying in was the familiar fare; movies and video games and occasional songwriting day in and day out.  They'd always end up falling asleep in each other’s arms.  Sometimes on the couch, during a movie.  Sometimes on the floor, cuddling atop a mountain of note-scrawled papers.  Sometimes in bed.

So this was it.  Settling down.

That’s the goal, right?

Noodle had won at life and she wasn't even old enough to drink.  Right?

Maybe not.

A week passed.  A month.  A year.  Two.  She didn't even notice the passage of time once they had settled into their routine, not at all.  Each day was a ghost of the last, a week a clone of any other.  Nothing seemed to shake the routine.

There was one Friday night when Noodle came home particularly exhausted.  Having argued with students and administration all day over some petty issue she couldn’t even remember, she wanted nothing more than to have some peace and quiet.  She grimaced at the concept of making dinner; all the noise and work and movement and smells would be overwhelming to her.  But, it was late, and she’d have to launch right into it without a moment’s rest.  Entering her home, she was a little surprised to find that 2D was nowhere to be seen.  There was a little note: _Gone to get takeout.  Be back soon!_  This prompted a sigh of relief.  She need do nothing but sit and deactivate her brain.

And so she did.  She plopped herself down on the couch and turned on the radio on the table next to her.  Static.  Different frequency.  More static.  And static and static and static until…

_...what has made me who I am today.  Except for this one.  This one didn’t influence me that much do be honest.  But here it is anyway!  Uh… something by Led Zeppelin!  Sweet Satan, I forgot the name.  Oh well, doesn’t really matter, now does it?  Anyway, here it is!_

She hadn’t heard that voice for years.  Or was it one year?  She didn’t know.  But it was a voice she didn’t want to hear again… or, so she thought.  The radio was never turned off.  The station was never changed.  The voice of Murdoc Niccals and the songs he decided were worthy of his radio show continued to fill the room for nearly an hour.  Eventually, Noodle’s brain turned back on in limited capacity, and she had a thought: _I wonder how he’s doing…_  But it didn’t matter to her.  That was behind them.

2D came back with microwavable chicken meals, the sort one would find nearly for free at any supermarket.  He claimed the ‘take-out people' didn’t look right and decided to cut and run before they could hand him his food.  So he went to the store and bought something quick and easy, and oddly, it turned out to be the perfect thing.  They ate on the couch, side by side, with the radio still running.  Neither said a word until several minutes after they were both done eating.  Then…

“Hey, Toochi?”

“What is it, love?”

“Do you remember that one time Murdoc went around hugging everyone?”

He took a moment to think.  “Yeah, I do, come to think of it.  He was real drunk, I thought.  Kept saying he loved everyone.  Course, that was real uncomfortable, having a forty-year-old man in his underwear hugging me and saying he loved me, but it was pretty funny when it happened to you.”

“Yeah, it was.  I hugged him back.”

“I remember that!  Why’d you do that?”

“I dunno.  I guess I just wanted to see what a Murdoc hug was like.  He’s not a very friendly guy, a lot of the time.”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s true.”

“But… I still kinda liked him back when I was a teenager.  I don’t know why.”

“Probably because he didn’t beat you up every day.”

“I know he didn’t.  But… you know he never really hated you right?’

“What?  Course he did!”

“No, Toochi.  I know he… wasn’t the best guy in the world, but I think he really cared about you.  Maybe not your wellbeing… but I think he liked having you around.  Overall.”

“What makes you say that?”

“I dunno… just a feeling, I guess.”

There was a short silence.  “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.  I never really liked him though.  I mean, I did at first but then I didn’t.  But I admire him.”

“How so?”

“Well, he's good at stuff I guess.  A phenomenal musician, he is.  And really smart.  I sometimes wonder what it’d be like if I were still his friend but he just didn’t hurt me.”

Noodle smiled a little.  “That would be interesting.”

“You know he liked you too, right?”

“Yeah, I know.  Just didn’t realize until too late, unfortunately.  And I guess I thought of him almost as… I dunno.  That one weird uncle everyone has.  The guy you feel like you should stay away from, but you love him anyway.”

“That’s pretty much what Murdoc is.”

“That's what I'm saying.”

Another silence, this one longer.  They were both staring forward at nothing in particular.  Eventually, 2D spoke again.  “I wonder what happened to Russ.”

“He probably realized we weren’t coming back and swam back to the mainland.”

“Yeah, but… what happened after that?”

“I don’t know.”

“Do you think he was mad at us?”

“Maybe…”  She giggled a little.  “Yeah, definitely.”

Noodle looked up to find that 2D was already staring at her.  “You know,” he said, “You’re awful cute when you laugh.”  It didn’t matter that they’d been living together for so long, those kinds of comments still made Noodle blush and turn her head away.  And 2D would always touch her chin to turn her to him and kiss her.  Usually it ended there; they’d just get back to whatever they were doing.  But something drove 2D to continue.  “I love you, Noodle.  I do.”

“I love you too.”

“No, I really love you.  Seriously.”

She giggled again.  “Well, 2D, I _really_ love you too.”  They kissed again.  Then, holding hands, they went to bed.

\--

The next morning was a Saturday just like any other.  Noodle had gotten up at 6:00 AM, rousing 2D as well.  She made him coffee and breakfast while he was in the shower, getting ready for work.  After a few minutes, he was clean, dressed, full, and ready to leave.  He kissed her goodbye and walked out the door.

And then she was alone, standing by the door in their home.  It was quiet.  She could hear the tick tock of the clock on the wall.  And it took over her mind.  Tick tock, tick tock.  Tick… tock…

She plopped herself down on the couch and activated the TV.  Something about the Olympics on the news.  London.   _Huh, that's cool.  Summer Olympics this year are being held back home.  Wait, did I just call England home?  No, this is my home now.  With 2D.  This is what I want.  This is what I've wanted for years.  I'm happy now._

Eventually she decided that she may as well eat something.  The typical morning rush required her to sacrifice her own morning nourishment in favor of 2D’s.  She walked into the kitchen and took stock of their supplies.  Good on the basics, not much she could make quickly in a microwave, though.  They had leftover salmon from last night.  2D had claimed it, but she knew she’d be forgiven if she ate it.  Just as she took it out of the refrigerator, she changed her mind.  It would take a bit of time, but she’d make kimchi, a dish she fell in love with when they took a vacation in Korea the summer prior.

Cooking kept her busy for a short while, but unfortunately, by the time she was done, most of the day still lay in front of her, and now she was bogged down by a full stomach.  So she cleaned up, took a shower, dressed a little nicely even though she had no reason to.  Put on makeup even though she almost never did.  Simply because she had nothing better to do.  Then she looked through her students’ grades to assure she had made no mistakes.  She hadn’t.

She thought about her students a little.  There were a few Gorillaz fans among them; she heard murmurs on a few occasions regarding the strange resemblance in both appearance and musical style between the famous Noodle and their Sensei Gonkura.  ‘Suzuki Gonkura’ was the name Noodle went by outside the privacy of she and 2D’s home.  She made it up.  But it kept recognition sufficiently at bay.  It took a little while to get used to being someone else, and she didn't really like having only one person in the world call her by her real name.  At least it was the man she loved.

Back at the TV, she flipped through the channels.  Nothing on.  She tried to play a game.  Couldn't get immersed.  She took a walk outside.  Nothing interesting.  She tried to write.  Nothing came to her.

She almost called a friend.  Murdoc.  She stopped herself.

_That’s behind me, that's behind me, this is my life now.  I'm… happy here.  I have to be._

_...right?_

If one must ask whether one is happy, then one certainly is not.

\--

2D arrived a little later than he usually did.  Late evening, in fact.  He usually was home by sundown, but not today.  Noodle hardly noticed, so very preoccupied with her own thoughts.   The closing of the door snapped her back into reality.  They looked at each other, and in a split second’s eye contact could tell that neither of them was feeling normal.

“There’s something I want to talk to you about-”

They said the same thing at the same time as 2D took a seat on the couch next to his partner.  “You go first,” he said, fiddling with the object in his pocket.

“Okay… Toochi… I… uh, I want you to remember that I love you.  Don’t forget that.  But… you… umm…”  She sighed.  “2D, are you happy?”

“What do you mean?  Of course I'm happy!”

“Why?”

“Well… because I get to see you every day.  And because I'm not being beat up all the time and I get to still do music stuff and… why do you ask?”

She sighed and looked down at the ground.  “2D… I'm not happy.”

He nearly gasped.  “You're not?”

“No.”

“I don't… make you…”

“Of course you do, Toochi, I still love you.  But… this?”  She gestured to nothing in particular.  “I don't think I want this anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

“Settling down.  Getting work-a-day jobs with the person you love.  I grew up with everyone telling me that that was the goal.  That once you reached such a point, you have done all you need to do in life and can devote your time to whatever pleases you.  I thought this is what I wanted.  But now, having lived this was for so long… it’s just not what I expected it to be.  It’s not what I wanted it to be.  It’s… _boring_.”

“Really?”

“Yes.  And I think that's why I've been unable to connect to this place.  I've been unable to call it home.  How could I call such place homely when it is associated with such mundanity?  For some people, perhaps this is fine, but that's just not what I was built for.  I need stimulation, I need adventure!  Do you know what I'm saying?”

2D hesitated slightly before saying, “You need Gorillaz.”

“Yes.  Exactly.  I've thought long and hard about it, and I've decided that I want to go back.  Abandon everything here and track down our old family.  Continue what we’ve started.  I never thought of Plastic Beach as Gorillaz’s final chapter anyway.  But…”  She took a moment to observe his face.  A little confused.  A little sad.  “2D, if you're really happy here, we can stay.”

“Noodle-”

“It’s okay.  I understand.  I think… I think I'll go to bed a little early though.  Good night.”  Almost before he could react, she kissed him and disappeared into their bedroom.

So Noodle was unhappy.  Huh.

The object in his pocket seemed to get far heavier in an instant.  He removed the little box and and opened it up.  Inside was an ornate gold and diamond ring.  Something he bought on something of a whim.  Something that made him hopeful.  But he didn't get to talk about it like he wanted to.  He wasn't sure whether he’d ever get the chance.

\--

“...huh?  What?”

Noodle had to squint up at 2D.  The room was too bright for her even with the lights off, having just been roused from her sleep.  She pinched the bridge of her nose trying to stave off a headache, as 2D took her shoulder and pulled her gently into an upright position.

“You awake, love?” he said.

“2D… it’s like four in the morning, Toochi, what is going on?”

“We have a plane to catch.”

“What?”

“I looked online and found a plane that'll be leaving in two hours.  Going to America.  Wait… Hawaii is in America, right?”

“...um, yeah, but-”

“Good.”

“Why are we going to Hawaii all of a sudden?”

“Well that's where Murdoc is, isn't it?  Come on, get dressed.”

Within minutes, she was wide awake, fully dressed, and standing in their living room.  All their possessions had been packed up.  Guitars, clothes, everything they’d want to keep.  The furniture hadn’t been moved.  The television was still plugged in and running, as were all the lights.  No matter.  They’d probably never come back.  This was all someone else’s problem now.

“You ready to go?” said 2D from his position on the couch.

“Toochi, I said we didn’t have to leave.  You’re happy here, and-”

“I’m not happy here.”

“But you said-”

“Noodle, I love you more than anything in the world.  So it doesn’t matter what I’m feeling.  If you’re not happy, I’m not happy.”

“...wow, 2D.  Thanks.”

“Of course.”  He stood up and took her side at their front door.

“Well… I guess Gorillaz is back.”

“I guess so.”

“Come on, 2D.  Let’s go.”

Then, hand in hand, they walked out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have you guys ever had kimchi? It's... interesting. My girlfriend was surprised when I told her I'd never heard of it, and proceeded to show me that she had a fridge dedicated to kimchi. No joke. She had a fridge just full of kimchi right next to a fridge filled with normal things. A little more concerning is the fact that the fridge has Korean text on it- no English at all! This is America, you can't really get Korean refrigerators that easily. It's concerning because (based on the conversations I had with her surrounding the kimchi fridge) I'm pretty sure that means her family just decided to bring their freaking fridge when they moved to the U.S.
> 
> Back on topic, I'm sorry for the tangent. Lemme know what you think. Criticism is welcome. Kudos are always encouraging.  
> Thanks for reading, you rock.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plane.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I'm not dead!  
> Sorry about the month and a half wait. I promise it won't happen again.

“Alright, ladies and gents, that’ll conclude my segment for today.  I know you love hearing the sound of my voice, but unfortunately, I have to go live the exciting life that comes with being a rock star.  Bye bye!”

After six hours of effectively DJing, Murdoc turned his equipment off, and left the soundproofed room.  He kicked aside clutter, eventually making his way to a couch in… some room.  He wasn’t paying attention.  There he sat, watching TV.  Smoking.  There was a show he liked- just one.  It featured models and swearing and violence.  Maybe there was a story to it; he was never able to tell.

Then something phenomenal happened.  He got bored.

A glint caught the corner of his eye.  He looked over.  Waning sunlight had made its way through the dusty window and had fallen on an even dustier object.  El Diablo.  The legendary bass of Murdoc Niccals, the greatest musician who had ever lived.  The man who now sat on his ass doing absolutely nothing.

Murdoc shook his head.

He stood, found some bread on a nearby table, and bit into it.  It was wet.  Brief hesitation, a “What the hell…” and another bite.  Continuing bread consumption, he started walking around.  It didn’t take very long to trip.  There was a small stack of vinyl records on the ground he knocked over as he fell.  Cussing, he almost began to reorganize them, but froze.  The three records remained on the floor for a while.  Eventually, he grabbed the middle one, and decided to play the entire thing.  Nearly an hour’s dedication, but an hour well-spent.

As Track 6 started, El Diablo glinted at him again.  “Hmm… must be taunting me,” he said with a small chuckle.  He started to sing along.  “City’s breaking down on a camel’s back, they just have to go cause they duh duh duh, bugger, I forgot the words…”  That was bad.  He swore to himself never to forget the words to that song.  In a flash, the record was stopped, and El Diablo was again in his hands, dust being kicked into the air with every little strum.  Even more with every frustrated slam of his fist against the instrument.  “No, it was E flat, E flat… wait, E flat, D…” he tried E flat and D.  “No, no, it was right, before, E flat, E flat… then… what was it?  Right,  _ then _ D, then…  _ shit. _ ”  He had forgotten perhaps his signature bassline.  This had to be remedied.  It didn’t take very long to think of a solution, but unfortunately, it required him to put on pants.

\--

_ Overnight flights weren't uncommon for Gorillaz.  Being on tour around the world meant that they had plenty.  The first one was perhaps the worst.  Not too bad- but there was a mild storm.  One they didn't see coming when they took off.  There was some thunder, and a few thick, dark clouds, but the pilot decided to plow through it.  It was actually a rather smooth ride.  But that didn't mean it wasn't scary. _

_ 2D could not take his eyes off the young girl with her face pressed against the window.  Pawing at the glass.  He couldn’t quite see the expression that accompanied her odd behavior.  “Noodle?” he said, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder.  The moment contact was made, she gasped, jumping back a little and nearly dropping the little translating device in her hand.  She looked a little scared.  “What's wrong, Noods?” he said to the little girl.  She didn't respond for a moment.  He was about to take the translator from her, but started to type away.  A minute later, she showed it to him. _

_ ‘I do not like flying’ _

_ He took the translator and typed into it, ‘Why not?’  Then came her response.  ‘It really scares me.’  A look of concern fell over 2D’s face as he rubbed the girl’s shoulder.  ‘It’s okay,’ he typed ‘It’s really quite safe on these planes.’  Her response, ‘But it still feared me, I do not know the reason.’  Maybe the translator wasn't perfect.  Anyway, 2D went on trying to comfort Noodle.  He asked if she wanted food, she said know.  He asked if she wanted to sleep, she said no.  He asked if she wanted to see Russel, she said know.  Finally, he asked, ‘What do you want?’  Her response, ‘I want to get out of this plane.’  He sat for a minute, watching her face.  A frown.  Wide eyes.  Slightly pale. _

_ “Stay here,” 2D said, standing up and walking toward the front of the plane, freezing at the sound of a quiet “No!” behind him.  He wheeled around to find Noodle in his seat, her arms making a beckoning motion.  Wordlessly, he returned, reclaiming his seat and allowing the young girl to bury her face in his side.  It took nearly an hour of resting in that position for her to fall asleep.  He was relieved when she did. _

\--

Murdoc sat in a waiting room, alone.  His seat was red.  The walls were red.  Everything was red.  And just a little warm to the touch.  Not too bad… in fact, almost pleasant.  Half the room away, a secretary in a beige dress with large glasses sat at a well-kept desk, typing away, each keypress far louder than the elevator-music-style jingle that seemed to be playing on repeat.  He didn’t know how long he waited.  Clocks didn’t work where he was.  But he did know it was enough time for the suit he was wearing to become incredibly uncomfortable.  He had just stood to complain when the secretary called “Murdoc Niccals!” without so much as looking at him.  Wordlessly, Murdoc continued through the massive double doors at the side of the room.

The office was nicely furnished, rather expensive-looking.  Not a speck of dust anywhere.  More red, but a little darker, a little homier.  Murdoc strode in confidently, speaking to the suited man at the desk with a volume that most would consider a quiet yell.  “Lucy!  How you been, mate?  It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

The man at the desk sighed.  “Murdoc, I’ve told you not to call me that.”

“Right, right sorry.  Err- what name do you prefer?”

“Lucifer.”

“Ah.  So no nicknames or anything?”

“No.”

“Just your normal, full-”

“What is it, Murdoc?”

“Huh?”

Lucifer gestured to the small stack of papers on his desk.  “I’m a very busy man, Murdoc.  You of all people must know that.  A lot-  _ a lot  _ of people get sent to Hell every day, and everyone I hire seems to be incapable of doing the most basic jobs, so I have to micromanage every little- you know what?  I’m not gonna go off on a rant.”

“No, no, take your time.  I don’t age here, so-”

They were interrupted by the ringing of an old rotary phone on Lucifer’s desk.  He picked it up.  “Hello?... yes.  Yes.  Yes.  Wait… no, no, you said the Somali pirates would… come on, God, cut me some slack.  You’re pushing me a little too hard here, I can’t accept them yet.  There’s a line long enough to reach Jupiter, and- wait, can’t you just give them to Peter?   _ He’s on vacation? _  Since when did saints get vacations?  I don’t remember agreeing to that...”

“Umm… Lucy, I’m uh… still here.”  Murdoc had made his way right in front of Lucifer’s desk.  Lucifer glanced up, and said into the phone, “Right, right, listen, I have a client with me right now, and- yep.  Yep I’ll take care of it.  Alright, gotta go.  No, God, I have to- ah, whatever.”  He slammed the phone onto the receiver.

Murdoc was a little taken aback.  “Did you… did you just hang up on  _ God _ ?”

“Yeah.  Don’t worry, it happens all the time.  He just  _ does not shut up _ .  Ever.  Anyway, what is it you need?”

“I was just going to ask for a favor.”

“Like always.  What is it this time?  Debts?  Killers?  Women?”

“Erm, no, actually… I want-”

“Wait, I think you still owe me something from that last favor I did for you.  Getting that Boogeyman and those pirates off your back, was it?”

“No no, I paid you for that.  Got you all those new followers, didn’t I?”

“Two.  That’s not very many.”

“Well, it’s better than nothing.”

“Yes I suppose it is.  And I suppose you plan on gaining me two more followers?”

“Yes I do.”

“Very well.  I guess I shouldn’t have expected much else from you.  Anyway, what is it you want?”

“Well… I want to get Gorillaz back together.  Right now.”

\--

2D woke with something of a start after another weird memory decided to visit him as he slept.  He looked about in confusion, baffled by what he saw.  People sitting in seats, a beautiful young woman sitting in the window seat next to him listening to music with headphones, infinite blackness out the windows…

Oh.  Right.  He was on a plane.  One that had experienced nearly twenty-four hours of delays.  It was midnight, at low altitude just after a fuel stop, and everyone but Noodle (and now himself) was asleep.  For some reason, he wanted to get her attention.  He poked her shoulder.

“Hey Noods?”

She removed her headphones and turned to him.  “Hmm?”

“Are you okay?”

“Of course, why?”

“Just… I just wanted to make sure you were alright.”

“Okay… then… well, I'm fine.”

“Alright, alright, good.  You sure?”

“Yes, ‘D, I’m fine!”

“Okay, okay…”

A long while went by in near silence (2D could faintly hear the music that Noodle was playing).  He distracted himself how he could.  Counting dots on the seat pattern.  Playing with his newly-bought mobile game console.  But 2D could not resist bugging her again.  “Noodle?”

“Yes?”

“Do you need anything?”

“...no?”

“Are you sure?  Cause I can go and talk to someone, I really don't mind”

“What’s going on?”

“Whaddya mean?”

“Why are you so concerned about me right now?”

“I'm always concerned about-”

“You know what I mean.”  Her face was serious, her tone slightly annoyed.

“Well… don't you get scared or something on planes at night?”

She stared at him for a moment.  Then she laughed as she leaned back in her seat.  “I'm not ten anymore, Toochi.”

“Of course not!  But… oh.  So you're not scared?”

“No!”

“Oh… I’m sorry, Noods.  Just… sometimes I forget that you grew up.”

“Yes, I know.  It is understandable.”

“You know, I was just worried that-”

“Toochi!  I’m fine!  Look… I've spent a lot of time on planes now.  And I know more about them.  I know how they work, and- and I believe I read somewhere that they're the safest form of transportation!  You're more likely to be in a car crash than a plane crash, so there's almost no reason to- DUCK!”

2D opened his mouth to respond, but a hand forced his head down, causing him to tumble out of his seat.  “Hey!  What the hell was the for?” he asked of Noodle, who was now crouched next to him with a determined look on her face.  She didn't say a word.  She merely pointed toward the front of the plane.  2D poked one eye over the seat, and, through one passenger’s grizzled hair, could barely make out the silenced barrel of a gun pointed right at them.  Held by legendary actor Bruce Willis.

Their conversation was composed of loud whispers.  “2D!”

“What?”

“Why is Bruce Willis pointing a gun at us?”

“I don't know!  Wait a minute… actually, actually this isn't the first time!”

“What?”

“Yeah, a couple of years ago before you came to Plastic Beach and before the car turned into a submarine but after the cyborg shot at a cop-” He stopped after noticing her confused face.  “Anyway, he was there, in a red car, and he was shooting at me and Murdoc!”

“Maybe he was hired as an assassin…”

“That's what I was thinking!”

“But why is he here now?”

“I dunno?  Maybe… maybe he followed us?”

“We spent years living in Japan, 2D, I don’t think that’s it.”

“Well… I dunno.  Get… get rid of him!”

“What?”

“You’re like a soldier, right?  Kill him or something!”

“Are you crazy?  There are too many passengers!  If I provoke _one_ _shot_ , someone can be killed!”

At that moment, Noodle looked up to see that Willis had made his way into the aisle, and was almost in position to fire.  She immediately jumped out, knocking the man onto the floor with a mighty thud.  The gun fell out of his hand and was lost several seats away.  While 2D cowered with shut eyes against the wall, Noodle and Willis wrestled, each trying to get a hold of the other.  Noodle had superior agility and intellect, but could not match his brute strength.  For several tiring minutes, they fought, until Noodle decided to end it.  She bashed his head into the floor with more than enough force to knock him out.  But… it didn’t work.  Confused, she went for a pressure point… but that didn’t work either.  She took a step back, recalculating, and was caught off-guard by a blow to the knee.  The young woman came tumbling down, and Willis came down on top of her, using his weight to keep her from getting up.  She struck him several times, but he did not bruise, he did not cut, he did not even hurt.  It was only a matter of time before he bashed his fist against her head, knocking her out cold.

Willis stood, and began searching for his weapon.  He scanned the floor under each seat, eventually spotting it and picking it up off the ground.  Slowly, he strode over to the unconscious Noodle, and lifted the firearm.

“NOOO!”

Luckily, 2D had decided to open his eyes, and sprang into action, taking Willis by surprise and managing to grab him.  In the brief moment that 2D had control of the situation, he let go of regard for his own life, or the lives of his passengers.  He only had one goal: Get this madman away from Noodle.  So he opened the emergency exit and jumped out of the plane, taking Willis with him.  They separated, then hey fell, through the black of night, toward the ocean.

Back on the Plane, the young woman on the floor began to stir.  As the world around her, came into focus, she became more confused.  Why was she on the floor of a plane?  Why were there papers flying around, out the open door…?

Then it hit her.  There was not a second to lose.

She scoured the craft for parachutes.  Luckily, there was one easily accessible at the back.  She grabbed it, grabbed the folded-up inflatable raft next to it, and sprinted out the plane’s door.  It was hard to spot 2D against the black of the ocean, the light of the moon illuminating almost nothing.  But she found him, and dove.  She had only taken a few hours of skydiving lessons as a child, but it was enough.  She eventually caught up to the screaming 2D, and grabbed hold of him.  Then pulled the parachute.  Even after slowing down, the impact against the water was painful.  Not enough to prevent them from easily treading water after the fact.

2D, who had shut his eyes as he fell, slowly opened them.  “N… Noodle?  Did… did we both die?”

She chuckled as she began to prepare the raft.  “No, we’re alive.”

“We’re alive?”

“Yeah.”

“Wha- how?”

“You saved me, Toochi, that’s how.”

“Well, I love you Noodle, so of course I did, but actually,  _ you  _ saved  _ me _ .”

  
She smiled.  “We saved each other.”

“But… what was that?  What happened?  I figured you could take a brute like him with your eyes closed.”

“I thought so too.  He just… didn’t get hurt!  I don’t know how to explain it!”

“That’s weird.”

“Yeah.”

“Maybe he was possessed?”

She chuckled again. “Yeah, maybe…”

It took a fair bit of time to get the raft inflated, but once it was, they did not hesitate to climb on and collapse.  Exhausted, 2D lay with his head against the side of the raft, Noodle with her head on his stomach.  Wet.  Tired.  Cold.  Stranded.  Yet… perfect.  Looking up at the night sky, unpolluted by city lights and human interference.  The stars were beautiful.  He looked down to see an outline of Noodle’s face, highlighted by the full moon.  She too was looking up at the sky.  She too was beautiful.

_ We’re probably gonna die _ , he thought.  They were on a raft somewhere in the Pacific with no food or water.  So he decided to take what would probably be his last chance.  He reached into his pocket, looking for the ring.  But it wasn’t there.  It had likely been lost in the scuffle earlier.  A tiny bit of heartbreak set in, soon replaced with uncharacteristic confidence so imbued by the prospect of certain death.   _ I don’t need a ring!  I’ll be fine without it! _

“Hey, Noodle?”

“Yes?”

“I- erm, I, uh, have… I have a question…”

“What is it, Toochi?”

She was now looking at him quizzically.  “I um… was wondering if you… wanted to… get, uh…”

_ But what if she says no because I don’t have a ring?  Oh god, of course she would!  Girls like rings!  I can’t do this now? _

“2D, are you okay?”

“Yeah, love, why?”

“You don’t look okay.  You’re shaking.  Here, let me…” She pulled the soaking wet shirt off of him and tossed it aside. 

“Now why’d you do that?”

“If you’re in danger of hypothermia, it’s actually better to have no clothes than wet clothes.”

“Oh.  That’s cool.  But I’m not cold, that’s not why I’m shaking.”

“Then what is it?”

“I was just, I just wanted to ask, uh… would you like to… uh, with me… d’ya wanna…”

_ Shit shit shit nope nevermind. _

“Toochi… you can ask me anything.  You don’t have to be so nervous.”

He looked her in the eye.  She was being sincere, of course, but also a little… what was it?  Hope?  Did she know what he was about to ask?

“NOODLE DO YOU WANT TO GO TO SLEEP NOW?”

She was a bit taken aback.  And a little disappointed.  She sighed.  “Yeah, okay.  I’m tired anyway.”  So she snuggled up against him, resting her head on his chest.  He wrapped one arm around her and buried his face in her hair.  One thought repeated in his head as he began to hear quiet snores.

_ Should have done it.  I should have freaking done it.  I’m a bloody idiot. _

\--

Noodle was the first to awake.  Salt stung her wounds and the morning sun stung her eyes.  It took all her energy to see through the glare and identify their location.

“No way…”

Then there was a familiar voice.

“You’re awake?  How you doin’, baby girl?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. Lots of leaks recently. Check out r/gorillaz when you have a chance.
> 
> Sorry for the wait. I'm just really behind in school (AP calculus is a bitch) and I've had about... little free time. And I got distracted another little prject of mine. You know those notes Murdoc was playing on his bass? Those are the actual notes to the Feel Good Inc bassline, and figuring them out for the story kind of snowballed into... me arranging an entire Gorillaz medley. Whoops.  
> For Noodle’s translated bits at the beginning, I typed a normal English phrase into google translate, translated to Japanese and back.  Yielded results that were a little weird but still comprehensible, which is exactly what I wanted.  
> Also: Phase 4 hype levels are insanely high right now, what with the Demon Dayz and the leaks and the countdown(?) timer and instagram posts of the past couple of days.  Can’t take it anymore.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of talking, not my best chapter. Sorry :P

2D awoke with an aching head and a pain in his back.  And arms.  And legs.  And everywhere else.  He rolled over in the raft, right on top of Noodle… except, he didn't.  She wasn't there.  Immediately, he sat up, squinting through the morning sunlight to try to find her.  He was on a beach.  An island?  The massive loud waves threatened to sweep him out to sea.  He figured it was best to climb out of the raft.  So he did, stumbling onto the sand, annoyingly causing it to cling to his still-wet body.  After a moment, there was a loss of grip, and he toppled over, his head landing next to… something.  It was either very large or very close, as it took up his entire field of view.  All he could process was surprise, begetting a quick yelp and a panicked scramble away.

Then he stopped.  A female voice was giggling a short distance away.  He took a moment to clear his mind and his vision.

A sandcastle.  He’d just scrambled away from a sandcastle.  And its creator was now laughing at him.

“Wha- shut up, Noods.  That's not funny.”

“Heh heh… I'm sorry.  But it is.”

“Yeah, okay, you’re right…”  He got to his feet, taking in his surroundings.  Yes, they were on an island, an unfamiliar one.  Beyond their small stripe of sand was a forest of tall exotic trees and high grasses.  It was hot.  Humid.  But oddly relaxed.  Perhaps because it was the spitting image of a tropical island one would see on a postcard, advertising honeymoons or family getaways.  A short distance down the sand, Noodle sat with her legs folded in front of her, watching her partner with a smile.  She was also in a bra and panties.

“WHA- NOODLE!” said 2D, running toward her only to slip and fall a couple of feet away, “WHERE ARE YOUR CLOTHES?”

“Oh, they were pretty bloody after last night, so I asked Russel to go find me more.”

“Okay… wait, Russel?  When did Russel get here?”

“He’s the one who brought us here.  He saw us drifting around in the water and dragged us onto the island.”

“What was he doing just out on the water?”

“Uhh, long story short, he left Plastic Beach after a while because it started to disintegrate.  He tried just swimming, but couldn’t make it all the way to any mainland since he’s not as big as he used to be.  This is the island where he decided to live until he shrinks enough to get on a plane.”

“There are planes here?”

“Yes, this is where we stopped for fuel before we jumped off the plane.”

2D took her hand and pulled her to a standing position.  “Then let’s go before Russel gets back!  He doesn’t need to know I’m here?”

She pulled away.  “2D, we can’t go yet!  You haven’t spoken to Russel in years!  Don’t you wanna talk to him?  Besides, I’m still almost naked.”

“No!  No!  He’s gonna, he’ll, he wants to-”

“Are you afraid he’s going to hurt you, Stu?”

He nodded frantically.  Noodle shook her head.  “No, 2D, his behavior back on Plastic Beach was a knee-jerk reaction to finding out we’re together!  That might not be how he feels now that he’s had some time to think.”

“But, he said-”

“Toochi, I'm telling you, that was before he thought about it.  It might be different now.”

“MIGHT be?”

“Well, he and I didn't discuss it earlier, and you haven't spoken to him yet, so I don't know for sure but- wait, there he is!”

Through a dense thicket of shaking trees approached a hulking mass of a man, in a white T-shirt of impossible size.  He spoke.  “Hey, Noods, where you at?”

“Over here!” she called out.  2D would have run if he weren’t bemused by the sight of a giant Russel emerging from the forest backwards.  His right hand held small clothes while his left covered his eyes.

“Sitting down, watch out,” he said, falling to the sand with a mighty thud, kicking particulate matter into the air.  Keeping his eyes covered, he held the clothes out as far behind him as he could, allowing Noodle to take them and put them on.  “I think I got the right size,” he said, “But I'm not entirely sure.  Basically just got what I could, you know?  Sorry if it’s not stylish or anything.  I tried my best.  Tell me when you’re decent, okay, Noodle?”

He had found her a tight-fitting red shirt with black buttons, along with a short black skirt.  Even tired, with frizzled hair having fought an actor and drifted in the ocean for hours, sleeping only half the night, she looked pretty damn good by 2D’s reckoning.

“Okay, Russ, I’m dressed.”

Russel dropped his hand from his head and slowly turned around.  It took but a moment for his eyes to land on 2D.  For a split-second, the singer’s mind buzzed.  Should he run?  Should he stand his ground?  Would this be a verbal or physical fight?  Or perhaps no fight at all; maybe Russel would proceed as if 2D were already dead?  He never made up his mind, because a giant brown fist had already begun its journey toward the blue-haired man.  He shut his eyes, fear and anticipation causing a little shake in his stance.

A gasp and a yelp, and his eyes were open.  The fist hadn't struck him, no, it had opened up and grabbed him.  All of a sudden, 2D was being crushed by the smiling embrace of an old friend.  Worried that suffocation would be his demise rather than harsh pummeling, the singer attempted to wriggle out of Russel’s grip.  Unsuccessfully.

“What, ‘D, you tryin’ to get away from me already?” Russel said with a bit of a chuckle.

“Erm- YES!” 2D wheezed, “You’re crushing me!”

“Oh, sorry…”

Massive, dark-skinned arms lowered 2D to the ground, allowing the singer to shake himself out of numbness.  “So, Russ… how are you?”

“Oh, I’m doin’ fine, ‘D.  Just fine.  Shrinking.  Slower than I’d like, but I am shrinking.”

“That’s good, that’s good.”

“Man, I am so happy to see you.  I know we ended on harsh terms back on Plastic Beach, and I didn’t want that to be the last time we saw each other.  ‘Cause we’re pals, ya know?”

“Oh, yeah, about that, Russ… are you mad at us?  For running away?”

He chuckled.  “Nah, not anymore.  I was at first.  Furious.  But I thought about it, and realized it was only a matter of time before you guys left, and I’d have to leave to, eventually.  Hell, it was probably good that you put some distance between me and you.”

“Heh heh, yeah… so… what happened to you?”

“What do you mean?”

“After Noodle and I left Plastic Beach.”

“Oh, nothing really.  I stuck around for a while, watching the island disintegrate.  Eventually it fell apart so much that I was  _ forced _ to leave.  Couldn’t hold me up anymore.  Now, at that point I had already shrunk a lot, but I thought I could still make it all the way to dry land.  I was… kinda wrong.  I ended up on this island about a year ago, all tired after swimming and everything.  Once I say there was an airport, I thought it would be easier to just wait until I could fit on a plane.  I went swimming every night, but just for fun.  Doesn’t really get boring.  And last night, I found your raft, and… now we’re here.”

2D was still a little nervous, taking steps away so slowly no one present noticed.  “Okay… well… does that mean you’re not gonna hurt me anymore?”

“Nah, ‘D.  You’re fine.”

He released a sigh of relief.  “Thank god.  That’s what Noodle was saying, and it’s not that I don’t trust her, because I do trust her, I just was real worried and thought you might beat me up when you first saw me.”

“See, Toochi?” she said, placing a hand on his shoulder.  “Everything’s fine.”

“Well, not exactly.  You two  _ were  _ floating on a raft in the middle of the Pacific covered in blood,” Russel corrected.  “How’d that happen, anyway?”

“Long story, tell you later.”  Noodle ran toward the end of the small forest, quickly scaling a small tree to gain a decent vantage point.  “I see the airport.  It’s a fair distance away, but walkable in an hour or so.  Russ, is there a hotel that 2D and I can stay at until we’re ready to leave?”

He shook his head.  “I dunno if there is, but I ain’t gonna keep you guys here.  You can go off and live your lives, I’ll catch up later.”

Hanging upside down from a branch, she frowned at him.  “Russel, we don’t know how long that will be.”

“I know.  And that’s okay.  This island’s pretty nice, most of the time.”

“Tell you what, Russ,” 2D interrupted, with his hand on his chin.  “Noods and I will stay the night with you, and tell stories around a campfire or something.  We’ll leave in the morning, and come back for you with a ferry.”

“A ferry?  How are you gonna get your hands on a ferry?”

“Well, we’re trying to find Murdoc right now, and he probably knows someone who can get us a ferry… probably some Mexican drug cartel or something, but I’m just about willing to go with anything.”

“Woah, woah, woah… you didn’t end up in the water because of Murdoc, did you?”

“Not unless he dressed up like Bruce Willis, or something.”

“Bruce Willis?”

Noodle jumped down from her perch and made a new one atop Russel’s shoulder.  “Okay, so Toochi and I were on a plane, minding our own business…”

\--

“HE ATTACKED THEM?”

“He wasn’t supposed to-”

“THEN WHAT WAS HE SUPPOSED TO DO, HUH?”

“It’s a glitch in the system-”

“You almost killed two of my band members  _ with a glitch? _  What the fuck does that even mean?”

“Do you know how these things work, Murdoc?”

“As a matter of fact, I don’t, and I don’t need to.”

Lucifer sighed.  “Demons are powerful things.  They used to possess people, allowing me to control their actions through my orders so I can complete tasks in the material world.  There’s a bit of a problem with that, though.  Any time I have to rely on other people, there are problems.”

“Are you saying one of your demon friends went rogue and got Bruce Willis to attack Noodle and 2D?”

“In a sense, yes.  Actually I fired all my demons a few years back because they weren’t doing their jobs properly.  I figured I didn’t need them.  I got a few of my guys to put together digital demons.  Robots.  Computer programs that do the job of a demon without going on strike or asking for raises.  A wonderful thing, no?  Except…”

“What.”

“Once or twice, they’ve  _ forgotten  _ things.  A few years ago, the Black Clouds came to me and asked me to smite both you and Noodle.  So I sent a digital demon to Bruce Willis to get the job done.  I cancelled the kill order on both of you after a little while, once I was sure the pirates had their fun, don’t worry.  I didn’t really  _ want _ to kill one of my most visible followers.  But business is business.  Anyway, when you asked me to put Gorillaz back together, I ordered Willis to point 2D and Noodle in the right direction.  They think you’re really in Hawaii.”

“They do?  ...that dullard.  Go on.”

“Apparently the Willis demon didn’t get the cancel on the kill order on Noodle for some reason, so… he attacked her.”

“That’s no bloody excuse!  I come to you to help, I expect you to help me, not murder my friends!”

“Friends?  Huh… but, Murdoc, you are in no position to argue.  You haven’t exactly fulfilled all your promises to me either.”

He thought for a moment.  “Point taken.  I bid you adieu.”  Murdoc turned around, heading back to the massive double doors.  “One last thing- why Bruce Willis and not any old gangrenous mobster or whatever?”

Lucifer took a cigar out of his pocket and stuck it in his mouth.  “Actors typically have the talents and resources to weasel their way out of bad situations once the demon wears off.  Why do you think OJ was acquitted?”

Murdoc nodded in understanding.

\--

“The fire’s getting pretty dim, don’t you think?”  2D said, admiring what was at this point little more than a pile of smolders.

“I’ll go find dry wood,” said Noodle, “Be back in a minute.”

“Hold up, little sister…”  Russel leaned over and grabbed her shoulder before she got all the way up.  “You sure you wanna go into that little forest at night?  I’ve seen some things in there, Noods… eyes peering at me, odd sounds, and… that place just rubs me the wrong way in the dark.  I dunno whether it’s animals, or people, or even spirits, but I don’t think you should be goin’ in there this late.  ‘Specially not alone.”

She shrugged him off.  “I can handle myself, Russ.”

“Yeah,” said 2D, “She could beat us both up at the same time while blindfolded with both hands behind her back while naming all the asteroids in the solar system and-”

“I get it, ‘D.  She’s fine on her own.”  He sighed.  “Sorry, Noods.  Just a little hard for me sometimes, knowing you’re all growed up and everything.  You know, it wasn’t that long ago that you were just four feet tall, upset that you couldn’t ride that big roller coaster with ‘D and Murdoc… do you remember that day?”

She shook her head.  “Not really.  It was a long time ago.”

Russel chuckled.  “Yeah, longer for you than it was for me.  Well, go ahead.  Just be careful in there.”

“Of course, Russel-san!”  She smiled and skipped off, kicking little clouds of sand with each footfall.

“Oh come on,” Russel said, turning to 2D, who had been drawing circles in the sand with a little stick.  “She did that on purpose.”

“Did what?”

“The whole  _ san _ thing.  The honorific, like she used to do before she really spoke English.”

“She’s just playing with you, Russ!”

“I know.  Still don’t like it.”

For a while, they sat in silence.  The only noise came from waves, crickets, and the occasional aircraft takeoff.  But there was something that 2D had to talk about- the elephant in the room, so to speak.

“Hey Russ?”

“Yeah?”

“You know… Noodle and I… we’re still together, we are.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Okay.  I just thought it was funny that last time I saw you, you’d punted me out into the ocean because we were together, and now we’ve spent the whole day together and we haven’t talked about it at all.”

“Well… to be honest, ‘D, I feel really… conflicted about this whole thing.  I mean, we were just talking about it.  It’s hard for me to see Noodle as an adult.  So to think she’s dating and everything… it’s a little off-putting.  ‘Specially cause she’s dating  _ you _ of all people.”

“What’s wrong with me?”

“Well, that’s the thing.  The only thing wrong with you is that  _ you’re you _ .  It’s weird to think of  _ you  _ with  _ her _ .  But there’s nothing wrong with you, ‘D.  Not really.”

“Oh… well, thanks.”

“Sure, I guess.  And, uh… sorry for kicking you into the ocean back on Plastic Beach.  I figure that must be part of the reason you ran away.”

“Well, yeah, kinda.  Does that mean… you’re okay with us?  Me and Noods, I mean?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess.  It’s been years, and you haven’t run off with some skank yet, so… good job.  And I’ve known she’s had a little crush on her since she was a teenager.”

“She told you?  All the way back then?”

“No.  But it was really easy to tell.”

Another long silence.

“You know, ‘D… I’ve actually thought a lot about the two of you.  The hardest thing was realizing that Noodle was gonna end up with some guy eventually, whether I like it or not, and after that, I thought… who else would it be other than you?  As uneasy as I am with your relationship sometimes, I think I’m a hell of a lot more comfortable with her dating you than basically anyone else.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.  She could run off with some handsome jerk, or some rich corporate dude if she wants… the kind of people who don’t really ever get to know her, ya dig?  And I’d hate that.  At the same time, I wouldn’t want her getting with someone who’s a total stranger to me, either, even if he’s really nice or something.  But you, ‘D… despite it all, you’ve been nothing but a sweetheart to her since she was ten years old.  And you’re just really… all around a great guy.  You’ve had my back and Noodle’s more times than I can count.  So… if it’s gotta be  _ someone _ … I’m glad it’s you.”

Noodle had made her way back to the edge of the forest, a small assortment of dry sticks and logs in her arms.  From where she was, she couldn’t quite see Russel or 2D, but she could hear them loud and clear.  Smiling, she leaned with her back against a tree, opting to wait and listen to the sweet conversation rather than walking in and causing an abrupt finish.

“Thanks, Russ,” 2D said.

“Don't mention it.”  2D glanced down at his fingers, twiddling them about.  He opened his mouth, but no words came out.  Russel squinted at him.  “There something you wanna say?”

“Well, it’s just that I’m glad you’re okay with me and Noods s’all.”

“Oh.  Okay.”

“And, um, I wanted to… to ask you something.”

“Alright, what is it?”

“Well, I wasn’t originally planning on asking you this, cause I thought I wasn’t gonna see you or anything, but now I am, and I don’t know for sure if I’m gonna see you again any time soon, so I decided I should probably ask you now.”

“Come on, spit it out.”

“I mean, Noodle’s Japanese, right?  And, and in Japan, more than it is here- I don’t mean on this island, I mean back in England, or for you, in America, it’s, uh… more important to Japanese people to ask the parents first.  I figure, you’re the closest thing Noodle has to a dad, so…”

“Ask the parents what?”

2D sighed.  “I wanted to ask you… if it is okay for me to… marry… Noodle?”  

Back behind the tree, Noodle gasped, nearly dropping the bundle of sticks in her hands.  Against her better judgement, she found a spot a little closer where she could actually see them.

After his question, 2D winced, pulling back a little, half-expecting a fist to come flying at him at ungodly speed.  But nothing came.

“You want to marry Noodle?”

“Yeah.  I do.”

“Did you already ask her?”

“Well, I meant to, but we were on the couch talking about something, then we were on a plane and we fought Bruce Willis and I lost the ring so I decided to wait.”

“...so you didn’t ask her?”

“No, not yet.  I want to, though.”

Russel looked pensive.  “Well, ‘D, to be honest it’s not really my decision.  Parental permission like that is a little outdated in my opinion, and I think Noodle would agree.  Ultimately, you gotta ask her, not me.  But I’m glad to hear you’re in it for the long haul.”

“Does that mean you’re not okay?”

“That means you don’t need me to say yes or no.”

“But what if I want you to?  For my own peace of mind, could you please give me an answer?”

Russel reached into his pocket, and pulled out a cigar and a lighter.  The image of such a large man trying to smoke with ordinary instruments would have been comical if 2D were not so preoccupied.  “You know what, ‘D?  Sure.  You go right ahead, and… ask my baby girl to marry you.”

“Really!?” 2D said with a big smile.

“Yeah.”

“Oh, thank you, Russ!”  The singer launched himself at his bandmate, throwing his arms around him and squeezing as tightly as he could.  Russel was about to return the hug, but was interrupted by a rather loud clattering a small distance away, at the edge of the forest.  Both men looked to its source; a pile of sticks and logs seemed to have spilled out from behind a tree  There was a muffled  _ “Shit!” _ before a pair of arms started scooping up all the wood.

“Noodle, that you?” Russel said.

“Yes,” was the cheery response, the word followed by the smiling woman laden with firewood.  As she got closer, the terrified look on 2D’s face came into focus.  “NOODLE!  HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN THERE?”

“Oh, I just arrived.  Dropped the wood on the way over.”

‘Oh… okay.”

“Why?”

2D looked to Russel to save him, but Russel remained silent.  “Because, we, Russ and I, were uh, planning, ummm… a surprise birthday party for you.”

“My birthday’s not for another three months…”

“Right!  Exactly!  It’s even gonna be, um… a surprise for us, because… we won’t remember it until it happens.”

She gave him a soft smile and a pat on the shoulder before turning to look at Russel, who was glaring at her knowingly.  “Well,” she said, “I think we should get this fire going again…”

“Yeah,” Russel said, “I  _ propose _ we do.”

Noodle stuck her tongue out at him.

\--

For the very first time, Murdoc was a little disgusted by the filth of his home.  Perhaps because he knew he’d have visitors he actually cared about for the first time ever.

After his shouting match with Satan, the man found himself famished, and proceeded to the kitchen.  There, sitting at the table, was a horrid looking blond woman who had clearly smoked something you don’t often find rolled up in a blunt or cigarette.

“Who the hell are you?” he said.

"Murdoc, baby, you don’t *hic* remember me?”

“Not in the slightest.  Did I sleep with you or something?”  She nodded.  “Ah, well I was probably drunk out of my mind.  You know how it is when you’re a rock star.  Crazy parties, lots of babes, the faces all kind of blur together-”

“But you said you loved-”

“I say a lot of things, sweetheart, and I don’t mean half of them.  Well, off you go.”  She didn’t move until Murdoc pulled her from her chair and escorted her out the door.  Deep breaths.  Relax.  They’d be there soon, he was sure of it.  But he needed to calm himself down.

Then it hit him.  He’d take a nice, soothing baff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THAT’S RIGHT, I ENDED IT WITH A MEME. YA HAPPY?
> 
> Also, guess who got tickets to see Gorillaz on tour in Boston this summer? Oh yeah, I did. And I’m freaking excited. Is this what it’s like to get the cool shoeshine? I think this is what that’s like. And I also preordered Humanz.
> 
> (why do they gotta be so damn cute)  
> https://i.redd.it/z2dx3z81iety.jpg
> 
> Thanks for reading, as always. Comments and kudos are really encouraging. You really freaking rock.


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